Difference between revisions of "Moderating positive adjectives with "hai""

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* 我 <em>还</em> 好。<span class="trans">I'm OK.</span>
 
* 我 <em>还</em> 好。<span class="trans">I'm OK.</span>
 
* 这 个 地方 <em>还</em> 好。<span class="trans">This place is OK.</span>
 
* 这 个 地方 <em>还</em> 好。<span class="trans">This place is OK.</span>
* 我 觉得 <em>还</em> 好,没有 那么 难吃。<span class="trans">I think it's OK, it is not so bad-tasting.</span>
+
* 我 觉得 <em>还</em> 好,没有 那么 难吃。<span class="trans">I think it's OK, it is not too bad-tasting.</span>
 
* 啤酒 <em>还</em> 行。<span class="trans">Beer is decent.</span>
 
* 啤酒 <em>还</em> 行。<span class="trans">Beer is decent.</span>
 
* 这 个 店 的 衣服 <em>还</em> 行。<span class="trans">The clothes in this shop are alright.</span>
 
* 这 个 店 的 衣服 <em>还</em> 行。<span class="trans">The clothes in this shop are alright.</span>
 
* 颜色 <em>还</em> 行。<span class="trans">The color is OK.</span>
 
* 颜色 <em>还</em> 行。<span class="trans">The color is OK.</span>
 
* 那 个 学校 <em>还</em> 可以。<span class="trans">That school is so-so.</span>
 
* 那 个 学校 <em>还</em> 可以。<span class="trans">That school is so-so.</span>
* 这里 的 菜 <em>还</em> 可以。<span class="trans">Here the food is so-so.</span>
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* 这里 的 菜 <em>还</em> 可以。<span class="trans">The food here is so-so.</span>
 
* 房子 <em>还</em> 不错,但是 有 点 贵。<span class="trans">The apartment is not too bad, but it is a bit expensive.</span>
 
* 房子 <em>还</em> 不错,但是 有 点 贵。<span class="trans">The apartment is not too bad, but it is a bit expensive.</span>
 
* 我们 老板 <em>还</em> 不错。<span class="trans">Our boss is not too bad.</span>
 
* 我们 老板 <em>还</em> 不错。<span class="trans">Our boss is not too bad.</span>

Revision as of 07:29, 14 May 2014

Whenever you want to imply that something is "meh", you can use 还 (hái).

Commonly used expressions

Structure

As well as continuation, 还 (hái) can also be used to weaken positive adjectives. This is similar to saying "quite" or "reasonably" in English. Stated underneath is the most common ways to express "hai".

Subject + 还 好

Subject + 还 可以

Subject + 还 行

Subject + 还 不错

Examples

  • 好。I'm OK.
  • 这 个 地方 好。This place is OK.
  • 我 觉得 好,没有 那么 难吃。I think it's OK, it is not too bad-tasting.
  • 啤酒 行。Beer is decent.
  • 这 个 店 的 衣服 行。The clothes in this shop are alright.
  • 颜色 行。The color is OK.
  • 那 个 学校 可以。That school is so-so.
  • 这里 的 菜 可以。The food here is so-so.
  • 房子 不错,但是 有 点 贵。The apartment is not too bad, but it is a bit expensive.
  • 我们 老板 不错。Our boss is not too bad.

“还” used as an adjective

Besides these common used fixed expressions, "还" can also be used together with an adjective. This structure can be used to weaken a positive adjective. "还" is similar to saying "reasonably" or "quite" in English. In addition to the above-mentioned commonly used expressions, “还” can also be used together with an adjective, expressing the degree to which one does something. However we will often add "算" between “还” and the adjective in order to add a syllable and make the expression sound more authentic. As well as continuation,"还"(hái) can also be used to weaken positive adjectives. This is similar to saying "quite" or "reasonably" in English.

Structure

Subject + 还 算 + Adj.


Examples

  • 房间 还 算 大。The room is fairly big.
  • 这 个 女 孩子还 算 漂亮。This girl is fairly beautiful.
  • 我们 公司 还 算 好。Our office is fairly good.
  • 工作 还 算 顺利。The work is fairly smooth.
  • 这 里 还算 安静。This place is fairly quiet.
  • 这 个 城市 的 还算 干净。This city is fairly clean.
  • 我 家 的 宝宝 还算 听话。My baby fairly does what it's told.
  • 这 家 店 的 东西 还算 便宜。The things in this shop are fairly cheap.
  • 这 个 人 还算 诚实。This person is fairly honest.
  • 还算 聪明。You are fairly clever.

See also

Sources and further reading

Books